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Teach, your children well

Discussion in 'BBS Hangout: Debate & Discussion' started by basso, Oct 16, 2008.

  1. basso

    basso Member
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    And you of tender years
    Can't know the fears
    That your elders grew by

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    interesting discussion here. while not completely agreeing with every specific detail below, i do agree with the basic thrust, bolded for effect, and deck.

    [rquoter]Of course you are right that indoctrinating very young children to say political things that they don't understand is repulsive. The first time I encountered that in a really graphic way, was in 2000, when an 7 year old, who was visiting my house, expressed curiousity at our pro-Bush stickers. Her mother had told her that "Bush was really, really bad for women and girls." I probed a bit, to see just what the mom had said, and to confirm that we were, in fact, talking about abortion. I was relieved that the mother hadn't actually explained the issue to the child, which would have been worse. But it was disturbing enough.

    That said, my own belief is that, sooner or later, and probably sooner, you have to talk to your children about politics, and the core values of your political philosophy, just as you would about religion (without confusing the two, of course). This is especially true for bright, curious kids who will want to understand the conversations around them. Four might be too young. But 8 is getting old, given what children are exposed to in the culture, on tv, and, as you note, on the very streets of your lovely blue neighborhood. (Sex, on the other hand, can wait much longer than fashionable educators prescribe.)

    Furthermore, depending on where you live, the better the schools you send your daughter to, the more likely she will be to encounter aggressively liberal teachers, textbooks, and fellow students. Kids want to be part of the group — unless you have given them a good sense of why they are right to oppose certain views and concepts.

    Ultimately, one's hope as a parent is to have children who can think for themselves and defend their views intelligently. Giving your child a coherent way of looking at the political world is a help, not a hindrance in this process. As she matures, she will be able to accept or reject what you have taught. If you refrain from conveying strong views, she will adopt what the ambient culture is pushing. Being overly punctilious about this — an understandable, honorable impulse, because we don't want our kids having to fight our fights — is, nonetheless, a mistake.

    And you know, it can be a lot of fun, as mental exercises go, to come up with ways of explaining the evils of taxation, the difference between capitalism and socialism, and the reasons that big government is a problem — even when our team is in office — to a thoughtful child. Beats the hell out of talking about Hannah Montana.

    FYI — As I recall, the original Disney animated movie of Robin Hood is a very hardcore examination of the evils of taxation, how it is used by tyrants, and how it impovershes the people and destroys freedom. It's a great start.[/rquoter]
     
  2. rimrocker

    rimrocker Member

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    I thought this was interesting.
     
  3. Space Ghost

    Space Ghost Member

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    Why? Are you insinuating conservatives as uneducated?
     
  4. rimrocker

    rimrocker Member

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    Well, the piece says that better schools have more Liberals.
     
  5. London'sBurning

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    I'm tired of basso song lyrics within every post.
     
  6. rimrocker

    rimrocker Member

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    What's funny is that none of the artists he uses are even close to his politics.
     
  7. basso

    basso Member
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    what do you know of my politics?
     
  8. rimrocker

    rimrocker Member

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    By tomorrow you'll have 10,000 posts.
     
  9. Rashmon

    Rashmon Member

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    Dedicated to McCain't and Bushed:

    Yes, we can change the world
    Re-arrange the world
    It's dying ... if you believe in justice
    It's dying ... and if you believe in freedom
    It's dying ... let a man live his own life
    It's dying ... rules and regulations, who needs them
    Throw them out the door
     

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